


Wounded

by Dash9er



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Black Paladin Shiro (Voltron), Gen, Hunk (Voltron) is a Mess, Hurt Keith (Voltron), Hurt/Comfort, Imprisonment, Keith (Voltron) Whump, Missions Gone Wrong, Protective Keith (Voltron), Protective Shiro (Voltron), Red Paladin Keith (Voltron), Shiro (Voltron) is a Mess, Voltron Bingo 2018, voltron_bingo_round_one
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-29
Updated: 2018-11-25
Packaged: 2019-08-09 17:03:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,002
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16453898
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dash9er/pseuds/Dash9er
Summary: From across the room, Shiro gave him aDo you need me to come over therelook. Feeling twelve again, Keith shook his head, trying to broadcastNothing to see herewith a dismissive wave of one hand.The other paladin narrowed his eyes, probably trying to figure out what had caused Keith to blush so violently. But after an uncomfortable moment, Shiro relented, giving Keith an encouraging smile and a motion that meant,Uncross your arms and stop scowling.Keith sighed and tried to look less threatening. Maybe he should unclench his hands. How did the others make this look so easy?





	1. High Cordia

**Author's Note:**

> This story was written for Voltron Bingo and my Keith card square: Isolation.
> 
> This story takes place early in season 2, after the paladins are back together but before Shiro's memories begin to return. So Keith does not know anything about his family, everyone is in their original line-up and Allura has just begun sending them out in groups when all five lions aren't needed. 
> 
> They can get more accomplished that way...usually.

Something about this place had Keith on edge.

  
The room was cavernous, three times as big as the control room on the Castle of Lions. The walls and ceiling were dark stone with strange patterns and textures carved into it. Random areas projected light from within, sending strange glittering swirls of galaxies dancing across the room. The dark flooring had a mirror-like surface that reflected the pinpricks of light and the floating globes that served as further illumination.

  
It was austerely beautiful but unsettling in a way Keith didn’t fully understand. He wished the others were here to see it, and to help watch Shiro’s back. But then again, it didn’t matter if the others were here; they wouldn’t have their bayards or helmets, either.

  
The Cordians had insisted the paladins be weaponless in the throne room. Keith had fumed but all it took was one of Shiro’s patented Disappointed Looks with an eyebrow raise before the younger paladin gave way. Years ago, Keith would have argued, would have debated with single-minded intensity until Shiro acknowledged the danger. But…ever since Kerberos, Shiro’s expressions had this wounded, fragile quality that just…just…

  
Keith sighed and set himself back to examining the room.

  
At the far end was a raised platform with an enormous throne carved out of what looked like white rock, shining all the brighter because of the darkness around it. Above the throne was a symbol: three green claw marks running diagonally. It read like a warning and quickened Keith’s blood again.

  
This was not a good situation. Sure, Shiro was not exactly weaponless, not as long as his Galra arm was functional, but he was literally surrounded by super-sized aliens with questionable intentions.

  
At least, Keith questioned their intentions. They were big and green and humanoid, covered in a soft-looking fur that was hidden underneath glittering, sumptuous attire. Large, green and grumpy-looking, like the Grinch dressed to go to a formal event.

  
These aliens were all taller than Shiro by a head at least, and their king was even bigger. But what made Keith really uncomfortable was that a small crowd had gathered around the paladins and slowly separated the two of them, almost as if on accident.

  
They had a lot of questions for Shiro, mostly intelligent ones that Voltron’s leader was well-equipped to handle. Unfortunately, another group had quite a few for Keith as well, none of which dealt with Voltron or the Galra or the welfare of the galaxy. As Keith answered the inane questions, his frown deepened.

  
“Yes, the sunset was nice, what I saw of it… No, I don’t like weezblak. I don’t…think so… No, I…what?” Keith blinked at the question. “No, my fur was not shaved off. This is _hair_ , not fur. And it only grows on my head and…a few other…places—and _why_ are we talking about this?” Keith’s face was burning.

  
From across the room, Shiro gave him a _Do you need me to come over there_ look. Feeling twelve again, Keith shook his head, trying to broadcast _Nothing to see here_ with a dismissive wave of one hand.

The other paladin narrowed his eyes, probably trying to figure out what had caused Keith to blush so violently. But after an uncomfortable moment, Shiro relented, giving Keith an encouraging smile and a motion that meant, _Uncross your arms and stop scowling._

  
Keith sighed and tried to look less threatening. Maybe he should unclench his hands. How did the others make this look so easy?  
“Are all noomans as small as you?”

  
Keith’s eyebrows rose up to their highest point. “You mean humans? No….see Shiro over there? And maybe you’ve seen the Yellow Paladin before? They’re bigger than me and still human.”

  
“Well, they are not as puny as you, but they are still relatively small.”

  
Keith blew out another breath through his nose and decided to count before speaking. Why couldn’t he just fight them? But he knew the answer to that: none of these people seemed like the warrior type. They were all dressed in constrictive clothing with a lot of metallic and jeweled accents, very fancy and very likely to be damaged in a fight. But so what?

  
There was a stir at the end of the room and the whole assembly quieted and turned toward the throne. The ruler of High Cordia entered in a slow, stately walk that allowed for maximum viewing and extended murmuring.

  
The space around Keith magically cleared and he wasted no time in slotting back into his position at Shiro’s side. At his small sigh of relief, Shiro glanced at him, then looked him over more thoroughly. Keith shook his head at the familiar mother hen routine. Everything was fine; now they could return back to the main priority: making an alliance.

  
After a moment of silence, the ruler called to the paladins and the crowd parted. The two of them moved forward, Keith watching the silent crowd warily. When they finally stood before the ruler of High Cordia, Keith felt the absence of his helmet and bayard. The lime green alien was an imposing figure, towering over both paladins even while seated. His black eyes raked over them without blinking, strange and calculating.

  
“The royal family of High Cordia possesses a special lineage,” the Cordian ambassador had explained to them earlier. “Their family tree can be traced back to the first, most primitive society on the planet. Since that time, the family has evolved into a truly superior race.”

  
And that was probably it, right there, the seeds of Keith’s distrust. The Cordians were very dismissive of “lesser” beings in their own country while taking every opportunity to flaunt the privilege of the glittering, glamorous crowd now surrounding them. As a minimalist who had been firmly planted in the lowest economic bracket back home, this sort of excess left Keith cold. Why would anyone spend so much time and energy trying to appear better than others?

  
“I, King Granthos, bid you welcome to High Cordia, home of the Xanthos family which has ruled High Cordia since the earliest times of our civilization. The Xanthos line, a superior line which included the great icons of the…”

  
Keith found his mind wandering. Sure, maybe he should keep focusing on the king’s words, but after the fifth mention of the king’s familial superiority, the desire to roll his eyes begin to supercede his natural desire to make Shiro proud. It was a constant battle.

  
Of course, Shiro was aware of this, if his quick, cutting look to Keith meant anything. _Damn_. Keith bit his bottom lip and shifted position, wishing he was more patient, or better at hiding his frustration, or already back in his lion readying to leave.

  
But no, the king kept talking. And the more he talked, the more his tone changed… until it didn’t sound anything like the usual gratitude the paladins received for their presence and help.

  
“I understand,” Shiro said diplomatically, “and the paladins of Voltron will in no way threaten the royal family or seek to supplant them in any way.”

  
Keith gritted his teeth. They had already promised this many times, and given evidence of it by leaving their weapons outside the throne room. What more could the paladins do to earn their trust?

“We are only here to offer you protection against the threat of the Galra,” Shiro insisted. “Voltron is only a weapon against those who are enemies of freedom and peace.”

  
A door closed at the back of the throne room with a resounding _**bang**_. Keith’s breath caught in his throat. His right hand twitched. No one in the crowd moved. The silence stretched razor-thin.

  
“Shiro?” Keith murmured, shifting his weight on the balls of his feet, ready for anything. He needed his bayard _now_.

  
“Hold, Keith,” Shiro muttered under his breath.

  
The king raised one thin, green eyebrow and exchanged a glance with the ambassador. “Who says we need protection from the Galra?” the King asked in an idle tone.

  
Keith’s gut went cold. Shiro stiffened beside him before asking, “We were under the impression that High Cordia wanted to form an alliance with Voltron specifically for the purpose of protection from the Galra. Were we mistaken?”

  
“You were,” the king replied. “We don’t need Voltron’s protection…not from the Galra.”

  
“It’s a trap,” Keith breathed out. An attack was coming; he could feel it and see it in the king’s gloating eyes. But from where?

  
And then two things happened almost simultaneously: a lion _roared_ and Keith’s bayard materialized in his hand, sword already extended. _Yes_!

  
“Keith, no,” Shiro said, chopping one arm out in front of him.

  
“No!” The king was yelling, “How dare you draw a weapon in my presence!”

  
“I didn’t,” Keith tried to explain, though a flood of anger was making his blood sing. Red was livid, fighting to get to Keith.

  
“Something triggered his lion,” Shiro said desperately, stepping closer to Keith. “Please, he didn’t—no, _Keith!”_

  
Keith spun to see a contingent of guards in battle-ready armor converging on him. _Great, they do have warriors!_ He blocked two strikes with his sword and threw the guards off of him, then spun out of an attack from the third guard. There was nowhere left to go, so Keith leapt up on top of the plinth to get out of reach of their long arms. The king’s throne was only feet away.

  
“Keith— _stop!”_

  
“Tell _them_ to stop!” he insisted, grunting as a strike slid off his sword and thudded on his armored forearm. From the corner of his eye, he saw the king stand and draw a dagger. But Keith was already fighting two guards and jumping over a strike at his feet.

  
“Shiro—" he yelped as he moved to block a strike at his face, leaving his back completely exposed.

  
There was a rush of movement behind him and a clang. Keith craned his neck to see that Shiro’s arm had stopped the king’s killing thrust at Keith’s back.

“Call off your guards,” Shiro snapped.

  
There was a tense moment as the guards paused in their fighting to watch the king try to press forward through Shiro. It didn’t work, even though Shiro’s arm wasn’t activated. Keith threw off his attacker and put up his shield.

  
But the king wasn’t done yet. “The red paladin drew arms in my royal presence! His life is forfeit,” The king shouted as he backed away.

  
“ _What?”_ Keith stared at the crazed king in shock, barely able to deflect a sudden blow from the guards that shoved him to the back of the plinth.

  
Shiro fought his way in between the guards and Keith, holding them at bay with his blazing arm. “He is a paladin of Voltron and is _always_ allowed to defend himself!” Shiro spat, eyebrows knotted fiercely. “Someone attacked the Red Lion and it sent Keith a blade to protect him. Find out who did that and punish _them_. This is not Keith’s fault.”

  
Another roar sounded, this one much closer.

  
“You are in my kingdom and will abide by our laws,” the king said petulantly before turning to sit on his throne. “Guards, subdue them.”

  
At that point, even Shiro gave up on diplomacy. “Out the door,” he said to Keith sharply over his shoulder. Then he backed up, pushing Keith off the plinth.

  
“What door?” Keith landed against the wall and ducked as a spear thwacked over his head. Then Shiro was there, shoving him a few steps farther, where a shadowed recess turned out to hide a doorframe. Keith lunged for the strange knob, which didn’t turn but lifted to open the door.

  
“Go, I’ll hold them off,” Shiro shouted as spun around, shield up, arm blazing purple as he faced the guards coming over the plinth and around its sides.

  
But there was no way in hell Keith was leaving him out here. Keith grasped Shiro around his rocket boosters and pulled him inside the room, both of them ducking behind the large shield.

“Close the door!” Keith shouted.

  
The stone slid easily, pushing out two guards who had just stepped inside. A heavy lock secured it with the sound of several more locks following.

  
“Guess this is some kind of panic room,” Keith said, breathing heavily. “Appropriate.” Ambient light cascaded down from somewhere near the ceiling, giving the paladins just enough light to see each other.

  
Shiro gave him a thin smile. “Guess we should have kept our helmets.”

  
“Hindsight is always 20/20.” The air inside the room was heavy and dusty. “Think there’s a way out of here?”

  
“If there isn’t, Red will make us one. You okay?” he asked, eyebrows high as he looked Keith over for damage.

  
“Fine. You?”

  
“Not even a scratch. We’re getting better at this.”

  
Keith snorted. “You mean _I’m_ getting better at this. You were already ninja level.”

  
“Keith, if anyone is a ninja around here, it’s you,” Shiro said, clapping him on the back. “Let’s move out.”

  
Once their eyes had adjusted, it was easy to scout out the large, mostly empty stone room around them. Keith crouched when he saw a figure in the corner. “Is that a statue?”

  
“Must be.”

  
They carefully passed by it, heading for the dimly-lit hallway ahead. Keith paused. “I hate to say it, but we don’t know where this passageway is heading and the guards do. Wherever we come out, they’ll be waiting.”

  
“Not necessarily. Not if we hurry.”

  
Keith grimaced but walked after Shiro more quickly. “Red is really angry. She’s going to knock down walls if they keep this up.”

  
“Tell her to stand down for now, but be ready just in case.”

  
“Do you have any idea how hard it is to communicate something like that to her?” Keith asked, agitated. A roar sounded from just above the throne room. Red’s fury was making Keith tremble. He paused and a large hand gripped his shoulder bracingly.

  
“Try to calm down and that will help her,” Shiro told him quietly.

  
Keith closed his eyes and tried to focus. “It’s just a misunderstanding, Red,” he murmured. “Calm down, kitty, _please.”_

  
And that was when all hell broke loose.

  
Bright lights flared, catching both the paladins off guard. Stone ground around them, probably multiple doors opening, and the pounding of feet meant guards entering.

  
“ _Dammit!_ … can’t see!” Shiro gasped beside him.

  
Keith’s eyes were streaming so badly that he finally closed them.

Reaching out with his other senses, he jerked his bayard up, trying to sense where to swing his sword. Just in time, he blocked a hit coming at his face. The enraged guard pressed forward, yelling something that sent his sour breath directly toward Keith. The guard was strong, but Keith finally managed to shove him off.

  
“Shiro?” he yelled as he activated his shield.

  
“ ** _Keith!”_** he heard from somewhere to his right. Despite himself, he turned and felt a whiff of air on his left.

Whipping back around, he saw a vague outline of a leaping figure and moved his shield to intercept.

  
But Keith had miscalculated. The guard’s entire bodyweight drove downwards onto the shield, causing Keith’s arm to collapse in a spasm of pain. The shield smashed into his face and everything went dark.

  
When he came to, Red was _roaring_. It was so loud…and then…was that Shiro’s voice?

  
Something warm dripped into his eyes, making them sting. It was still so loud—lots of crashes around him and yelling. At some point, Keith realized he was on his knees. Rough, unfriendly hands shook him and someone was hissing in his ear. There was a blade at his throat.

Blearily, he tried to focus and fight but his hands wouldn’t move; they were stuck, bound behind his back.

  
“Call the Red Lion off or we will kill her paladin.”

  
“Shiro?” he tried to ask. There was no answer except for a sharp sting at his throat. Red was silent.

  
_What the hell is—_

  
There was a sharp prick on his neck. He was out before he’d even realized he was losing consciousness.

 

* * *

 

Shiro was incandescent with rage.

When the lights had blinded him, he’d struck out against the attack of the guards, not even realizing they weren’t fighting back. Instead, they’d waited until his prosthetic arm was extended, then caught it in a series of ropes that proved to be conductive material. Before he could break loose, they’d sent an electrical charge through him.

  
He’d gone mute and rigid, flashbacks of his time in Galra captivity breaking in and fizzing out of his scattered thoughts. At some point, his body went lax, held up between two guards.

 _Keith?_ By sheer force of will, Shiro was able to look up and see Keith. He froze.

  
The Red Paladin was barely conscious, a thick ribbon of blood running down his face. A guard held him against his body, one gloved hand holding his throat, the other positioning a long, thin blade against his neck.

The guard was smiling as he barked out, “Call the Red Lion off or I will kill her paladin.”

  
“Okay. I will, just…it will take a moment.” He closed his eyes and tried to communicate with Black. There was a warm greeting in his mind that turned cold when he told her what he needed.

  
Black impressed upon him the difficulty in getting Red to back down from anything but _especially_ when it involved her paladin. Shiro agreed, but insisted.

In a minute, the roaring and shaking of the castle walls ceased.

What seemed like hours passed and then Shiro found himself on his knees in the now brilliantly-lit room. His arm had been freed and it hung limply by his side, useless. Twinges of pain travelled up and down his body.

  
Slowly he lifted his head. “Keith? Where is he?”

  
The king regarded him impassively. “He’s in the dungeon, of course.”

  
“If you’ve harmed him, there will be swift retribution.”

  
The king lifted delicate eyebrows. “Such strong words from a… _ahem_ …peaceful delegation.”

  
“This was all a misunderstanding,” Shiro tried to explain one last time. “When the Red Lion felt herself in danger, she sent Keith—”

  
“Silence,” the king snapped, rage slowly taking over his features. “You forfeited all right to counsel me when you fought against my guards in my throne room!”

  
“But Keith—"

  
“Silence!”

  
Shiro bowed his head, hoping submission would appease the monarch for now. He needed to be in the best shape possible to try to escape.  
There was a long moment as the king enjoyed his quiet and Shiro gritted his teeth.

  
“It is clear to me that whatever benefit we might have received from Voltron is minimal at best. I regret ever allowing you into High Cordia. Get your Red Paladin and go. He should be in the dungeons.”

  
Shiro was shocked. He’d thought the king incapable of mercy and that he and Keith would have to be rescued. “And our lions?”

  
“They are unharmed. Guards, lead him to the dungeon.”

  
The guards had to help him to his feet. Shiro felt unbalanced without his arm working properly and all the questions in his mind didn’t help. His connection with Black was full of concerned, simmering anger. He would just have to follow this path onward and hope for the best.

  
_I’m on my way, Keith. Hang on_.

 

* * *

 

Keith woke to a splitting headache and dripping, wet darkness.

There was rough stone against his cheek, under his hands. _What…why am I on the ground?_ He tried to push up but his arms were too weak. All he could manage was a roll to one side that was definitely a mistake.

Dizziness overtook him, the ground underneath seeming to lurch one way and then another. Keith clutched at the ground and rode it out as best he could.

  
“Shiro?” he whispered like a prayer, knowing that just his voice would be enough to bring help if it was nearby.

There was no answer. Several minutes passed while Keith calmed his breathing, focusing on the constant _drip…..drip…..drip_ from somewhere nearby.

  
Eventually, the pain faded enough for him to begin thinking again. His head throbbed painfully in time with his heartbeat. His body felt bruised every place it touched the ground. With another groan, he pushed his hands under him and levered his body up. Panting, he had to stop before going any farther.

The pain in his head was excruciating. The floor seemed again to tilt and dip under him and his fingers shook as he grasped at the stone beneath him.

  
After a long battle with rising nausea, Keith managed to get his knees under him, then sit back on his haunches. He could see the room around him finally. It looked as he expected—a dark, dank medieval cell that backed up into a darker, danker alcove. As far as he could tell, he was the lone prisoner.

  
In front of him were prison bars that blocked his escape into the dark hallway ahead. Not that he could even think about moving that far. The damn door could be unlocked and he wouldn’t even know it. He had to get up on his feet, had to check on Shiro—

  
A door opened from somewhere down the hall, the sound and voices echoing their way to Keith.

  
“…this way…”

  
“…not leaving without him.”

  
_Shiro_. Keith gasped and tried to stand but collapsed, barely catching himself before his head hit the floor.

This...this wasn’t right. Something else was wrong with him, with his balance, his thinking. _Drugs_. _That’s right!_ Hadn’t he been drugged? How had he forgotten that prick on his neck?

  
_Shiro_! He was coming. Steps down the hall, voices echoing so loudly that Keith couldn’t really understand the words.

The room was spinning and it was all he could do to prop himself up on one elbow, to lever himself up high enough to see who was coming.

  
The darkness parted around the body of Shiro, the shadows sliding off his white armor like oil. Keith had never been happier to see his friend. His prosthetic arm was deactivated and he was moving slowly. Had he been hurt, too?

  
“You only have one prisoner here?” Shiro was asking, the words distorted and barely comprehensible.

  
“Yes. The other cells are empty. This prisoner has been here for years. He very stupidly tried to assassinate the king. The king doesn’t forgive or forget that easily.”

  
Keith heard the words but could make no sense of them. Who were they talking about?

  
“I can’t see him very well,” Shiro said, and then light blinded Keith’s eyes, sending painful echoes into his brain. The voices fuzzed out for a few moments. Then, “What happened to him?”

  
“Shiro?” Keith muttered, wondering why Shiro was still standing there watching him instead of insisting on coming inside to get him out.

  
“He was born that way, disfigured from birth. They say his infirmity made him mad. Despite the king’s anger, we are seeking to rehabilitate him.”

  
Shiro’s eyes were on him; Keith could feel them. But they were coldly assessing…why?

  
Struggling, Keith pushed up on his hands and knees with a pained groan.

“Shiro,” he called, but for the first time, his ears heard the strangeness in the sounds. His tongue was swollen in his mouth so badly that it was impossible to understand him.

But couldn’t Shiro recognize him?

  
Keith looked down at his own body and gasped. He couldn’t believe what he was seeing. There was a layer of sleek, silver material hugging his body closely, but that wasn’t what Shiro was seeing. Somehow, the material projected a holographic visual of a body that was very different from Keith’s. There were lumps in strange places and his knees bent the wrong way. He appeared to be as long as one of the Cordians; could his face be altered as well?

  
“What is he saying?” Shiro asked.

  
“It’s impossible to know.”

  
“Let me see the other cells. Keith has to be here somewhere!”

  
The distant door opened again and a loud voice came down the hall, echoing. “We’ve found the Red Paladin outside! He’s unconscious, but mostly unharmed.”

  
The words echoed around in Keith’s brain and he couldn’t make any sense of them. Wasn’t _he_ the Red Paladin? But it didn’t matter; Shiro was leaving, running out to find Keith.

  
The bright light that had been trained on Keith’s cell went out.

  
“No, wait,” Keith tried to call out, but the groans that came out were nothing like the words he wanted to say. _“Shiro!”_

  
Keith’s thinking capability was tanked; he knew this. But none of this made sense. How could the guards have “found” Keith when they had never lost him? He was right here and was far from unharmed.

They were lying to Shiro. How could they think that he would believe that person up there was Keith? All it would take was a little time and surely it would be obvious…

  
_Oh…time_.

  
For whatever amount of time it took Shiro and the others to realize, the Cordians would have Keith here at their mercy. What were they after? Information?

  
Whatever they were after, Keith resolved they would never get it.  
The echoes of pain weighed him down until he gave in and collapsed against the stone floor. He lied there, eyes closed, trying to center himself for whatever came next.

It was not going to be pleasant.

  
After some indeterminate time, a noise woke him. Which meant that he’d been asleep…?

  
“Shiro?” he whispered, but then, in trying to move his head, the pain surged and blackness danced at the edges of his vision.

  
Helpless, he tried to breathe through the pain. It was difficult to hear anything over the beating of his own heart, but he didn’t hear his friend at all.

  
“Did you finally wake up?” a sneering voice said suddenly from his left.

Keith tensed, but knew better than to turn his head quickly. By cutting his eyes to the side and moving his head in increments, he was able to see a dim figure standing beyond the bars.

“Pitiful, furless alien. That was the stupidest thing I’ve ever seen someone do, pull a sword in front the King.”

  
Keith wanted to protest, but all he could manage was an inarticulate groan.

  
“I’m surprised he didn’t run you through. Of course, your friend tried to vouch for you, but he gave up soon enough.”

  
_What? No_ ….

Keith knew better than that. He knew Shiro would never give up, but just the thought was enough to bring tears to his eyes in his weakened state.

“He…he…”

  
“Yeah, that’s right, he gave up on you.”

  
Anger cleared Keith’s head enough for him to push up on his hands and knees. He had to defend Shiro. Who was this idiot trying to convince?

But Keith’s tongue was still swollen and his head was throbbing and the knockoff Grinch wouldn’t stop talking.

  
“He left, without a single word for you. Disgusted at your behavior, I’m sure. What would he say if he could see you now?”

  
Keith shook his head, then regretted it and lowered his head to the floor as the room spun around him.

He remembered seeing Shiro earlier. The Cordians had camouflaged Keith. That was why he had been left alone. But Shiro _would_ be back…right?

  
“Doesn’t really matter though, since he flew off without you. Left you here to rot. I guess they’ll have to find another paladin now.”

  
Slowly, Keith collapsed against the cold stone floor, his mind moving sluggishly. Fear churned in his stomach. Had Shiro actually left him?

  
“That’s right. He took the lions and left you here alone to face judgment. Unfortunately for you, that means you will have to pay your debts alone. But it won’t be too hard. Turns out the Galra pay pretty well for information about Voltron. Even more for an actual paladin. 

  
Keith gave an inarticulate roar, smashing his fist into the ground and letting the pain blot out everything but the faint echo of cruel laughter in his ears.

 


	2. Bereft

Shiro led Black into the hangar on the castleship, hands shaking, a cold sweat prickling all over his body. He’d never made a bigger tactical error in his life and Keith had paid the price. The younger paladin was unconscious, littered with injuries and near lifeless. Red was much the same; Black was carrying her in his jaws.

“Is he still breathing, Shiro?” Lance asked for the twentieth time.

“Lance,” Pidge snapped. “We’ll see him in three tics! And of course he’s breathing…right, Shiro?”

Shiro wanted to run for the back but he had to finish the landing. Dread was already coagulating in his veins, but he fought it off. Keith  _had_  to be all right…the alternative was too awful to contemplate.

Hours ago, when Shiro had come running from the dungeon, he found that the Cordians had already strapped Keith on an emergency cot, preparing him for transport to the Black Lion. He had looked terrible: unconscious, pale and bloodied from a head wound. After that, it was a blur as to exactly how Shiro had gotten the cot in Black. Had the Cordians helped? They must have, because Shiro’s arm had been dead at that point. Sometime during the flight back to the castleship, it had rebooted and seemed functional now.

Finally, Black was safe in the hold. Shiro ran to the back where he found Keith disturbingly still and lax on the cot. A quick check showed that he was breathing, but shallowly. “He’s good.”

There were several whispered words of relief over the comms.

Quickly, Shiro pulled off the pieces of the Red Paladin armor and ran his hands up and down Keith’s arms, torso and legs, feeling for breaks. None…which was shocking, considering how roughly those guards had treated Keith.

“Shiro, are you bringing him out?” Allura asked hesitantly.

“We can come in there, Number One,” Coran offered, “if it’s easier.”

“No, I’ve got him. We’re coming out now.” Shiro slipped his arms under Keith’s back and knees, lifting him with some effort.

“C’mon Black, open up,” he asked as he stood and she obliged.

Shiro walked out, making a concerted effort not to look directly at Keith’s passive face. The younger man was so heavy and still; it felt wrong. A niggle of doubt stopped Shiro in his tracks.

_No._

He looked down in horror. There was no movement from Keith’s chest at all.

Shiro started running. “Please, help,” he shouted as the others approached, “he’s stopped breathing.”

Chatter exploded on the comm and the paladins, who had been surging forward to surround Keith, split to the sides instantly.

“To the med bay, hurry,” Coran shouted.

 Shiro was already moving, Allura running with him and the others following close behind. His mind narrowed to the limp figure in his arms. He’d begun begging Keith, silently at first, then spilling from his lips. “Please, Keith—don’t. Please… _please.”_

The med bay was eons away, but finally they arrived.

Shiro laid Keith on one of the beds and backed away, shaking like a leaf. Allura and Coran went straight for Keith and started measuring his vital signs, calling out numbers…shouting questions to each other. They weren’t giving up…now they were attaching machines and…and…

Shiro turned and smashed a fist into the wall. He fought to calm his breath.

Pidge and Lance arrived next. Shiro only noticed because Pidge barreled right into his chest plate and held on to him for dear life. Lance drifted over like a ghost, one hand over his mouth that still didn’t keep him from talking.

“…it wasn’t  _that_  bad, was it? Oh god, he can’t  _die_! You were just supposed to  ** _talk to them!”_**

Hunk arrived last, tears already flowing. He looked at Keith, then at Lance and Shiro, who was numbly holding Pidge. He stretched out his arms to Lance and the other paladin fell into them, crying silently.

Shiro  _wasn’t_  crying, because Keith was going to be—

But then the frenzied movement over Keith stopped. Coran was staring at Shiro, his face chalk white. And time just—stopped.

“He’s gone, Shiro…. I’m sorry,” Coran said. “But…”

Coran kept talking…but something had gone wrong with Shiro’s hearing. Shiro turned away amid a surge of muted noise. Pidge was yelling at Coran, Lance, too. But it all sounded far away, too quiet to be heard over the thudding in Shiro’s ears.

Keith was dead.  ** _Dead?_**

He died on a mission Shiro was leading. Shiro had failed, failed so spectacularly that a paladin had died….that  _Keith_  had died. Shiro’s worst fear come to life, one he hadn’t even realized, hadn’t ever allowed himself to consider— _permanent_  failure: death.

He was falling, falling until someone grabbed him and someone else grabbed him and then he was sitting down in a chair. Time kept slowing down and then jumping ahead. The chair was comfortable, he noticed vaguely, and he might be having a panic attack. But it didn’t matter. Did anything?  _Keith is dead._

Someone struck him across the cheek and the room jerked back into focus. Everyone was staring at him and Lance was kneeling in front of him, eyes wide.

“Listen to me! Shiro?”

Shiro’s eyes went unerringly to Keith’s lifeless body on the bed. Without meaning to, he stood, walking toward him in a daze.

Someone was shushing someone in the room.

“Keith,” Shiro muttered when he was standing beside him, “I…I…what…”

“Shiro,” Allura was suddenly standing across from him, eyes wet but intense. “We’re trying to tell you that this is  _not_  Keith. Do you hear me?”

Shiro blinked. For a long moment, he tried to force his brain to process her words. “What?”

“This body is dead, but it is  _not_  Keith. Someone made him look like Keith, shockingly like him, and even put his paladin armor on him...”

“Oh my god,” Hunk muttered, “real Keith doesn’t even have his armor.”

Allura continued, her eyes boring into Shiro’s own, “…but this is  **not**  Keith. It was not ever alive, just a…lifeless robotic body that must have mimicked life enough to fool you— us— for a time.”

Shiro felt like he was floating, disconnected, his mind flipping through information like slides on a projector. Lance was there beside Allura, firing question after question that Shiro couldn’t answer. He couldn’t even listen. How had he missed this?

Keith had escaped. The Cordians said they couldn’t find him at first so they took Shiro to the dungeon. And that’s when they found Keith outside…but were they telling the truth?  _Oh god…of course not._

There was only one possible answer.

 “I left him.” Shiro swung around and found Lance’s horrified eyes.

“What?  _Where?”_

 “I don’t know! The only person I saw was…” Shiro cut himself off and gasped, taking a step back as if it could distance himself from the truth.

“Was what?” Hunk asked tearfully.

“That…no…” Shiro shook as he remembered that horrible, misshapen figure in the dungeon that made incomprehensible noises and moved as if it were in agony. “That couldn’t have been him!”

 “If they could make you think  _this thing_  was Keith,” Pidge said from where she had been examining the fake, “then they could make you think Keith was someone else.”

Shiro fell forward a step, catching himself with a heavy hand on Lance’s shoulder. Breathing deeply, he only allowed himself to feel the intense pain for a few seconds. Then he shoved it down, buried it deep so that he could function. “Then Keith is still there, unrecognizable. The Cordians had him in the dungeon.”

“Uh…why would they keep him?” Hunk asked. “Do I even want to know the answer to that?”

“They lied about needing protection from the Galra. I think…they were going to cooperate with them.”

“And now they have a paladin to offer them,” Allura said in a hard voice.

“Not if we get there first,” Lance said, cursing as he ran from the room.

“Everyone to your lions,” Shiro shouted as he and the others followed.

“Is Red back online?” Pidge asked, “she could take us straight to him!”

“No, Pidge,” Hunk answered, huffing over his comm as he ran. “She’s still off-line.”

There was a long pause over the comms. Then Shiro said quietly, “It doesn’t matter. Keith isn’t—he won’t be in any condition to fly her.”

  

* * *

 

 

Time passed in the dripping, dark dungeon, but only lethargically during Keith’s brief periods of consciousness. Pain was his constant companion, made only worse by the guard coming in once to give him some water. Most of that visit passed in an agonized blur, despite the mostly humane treatment.

“Yeah, sit back, relax,” the guard said as he locked the gate again, “the Galra will be here for you soon enough.”

Keith rested his head back on the stone floor, breathing hard and letting the knowledge sink in. This was the end for him, but in a way, it made sense. It had always seemed to him that being a part of Voltron was too good to be true.  _Look, Keith, here’s an opportunity to be a hero like your Pop while working with your favorite person in the world and doing something that actually means something: saving the universe from evil_.

The other paladins seemed to fit their roles so easily, but Keith had always struggled to be a good enough point man. He had trained as hard as he could, but even so, missions like this proved that he would never be quite what they needed.  _No use fighting it anymore._

Keith sighed and blinked a few useless tears from his eyes. He had screwed up and they had taken Shiro from him. Now he was on his own and was going to die for being  _stupid_ , for not listening to his instincts. How many times had he relearned this lesson?

There was only one bright spot. If the Cordians had told him the truth, Shiro had gotten away with the lions and gone on to safety. It was only Keith who was going to pay for his mistake—no one else. That was good. All he had to do was die bravely, like his father. But…it was hard to do knowing that he’d never see Shiro again.

A tremor ran through his body and the pain spiked in his head. That was happening more regularly.  _Not good._

Somewhere above, a distant explosion sounded and Keith’s heart leapt.

 _Red?_  But there was no answering warmth in his mind. Keith paused.

The Cordians were expecting the Galra to come peacefully and trade for Keith. But since when had the Galra kept their end of a bargain?

Keith chuckled darkly and the weak, disjointed sound echoed around the walls. The Cordians sent word to the Galra and the Galra had answered with an attack. Keith couldn’t even be surprised.

And what would happen when the Galra came to the dungeon to get him? Would the Cordians try to use him to bargain? Would the Galra slow down long enough to listen?

Keith felt exposed, helpless. He couldn’t just let this happen.

Instinct drove him crawling to the alcove, to the back where the shadows lingered. He panted all the way, ignoring the throbbing in his head until he was able to curl up in the corner. It was dark and cool here, a good place to hide. He held his head and trembled and listened to the distant rumbles.

_I’m so sorry, Shiro._

Above him laid several levels of solid rock. Whatever he was hearing…must be incredibly loud up on the surface.

 

* * *

 

Shiro's gut twisted sickeningly. "We’re too late,” he murmured.

The royal city of High Cordia was burning. From up above, the paladins watched in dismay as two Galra cruisers fired mercilessly on the beautiful city below. Explosions erupted in a line down the central street.

“Oh no,” Pidge gasped. “Is that it?”

The enormous cube-shaped building that housed the throne room, royal quarters and the dungeons below had been blackened but was still standing. A large, gaping hole spewed detritus from its front and half of the roof was shorn off. Smoke poured from one corner.

“Keith was in  _that_  building? The—the burned one?” Lance’s voice edged on hysteria.

“He may have already been moved, Lance,” Allura said hurriedly. “It would be foolish of the Galra to begin destroying the city before they secured him.”

Shiro’s chest loosened just a little. “He was in the dungeon down below the royal quarters. The lower levels may still be intact. Pidge, is there any way to scan for him?”

“Not without his paladin armor. There are too many life forms down there and no way to tell which one is his.”

“We have to start somewhere,” Lance said tersely.

“Our goal should be to avoid attacking until we know more about the situation,” Allura said. “Do everything you can to remain unseen until we know Keith’s location.”

 “Pidge, you’ll have to take all of us in Green and stay cloaked. I’ll take the castle, the throne room and the dungeon. Hunk, you’re with me. Lance and Pidge, you check the Galra cruiser that’s still on the ground. Keith might already be aboard.”

 “Don’t worry, Shiro,” Lance said. “We got this.”

“If he’s there, we’ll find him,” Pidge said in a steely voice.

“I know. Let’s go.”

Minutes later, Shiro and Hunk were dropped off right outside the building. They took cover immediately, but found that the entire square in front of the royal building was burned and deserted. A haze of smoke floated through the air and a few fires still burned in nearby buildings.  

“Do you see any bodies?” Hunk asked timidly. “’Cause I feel like there should be some….but I don’t see any. Which is kinda’ weird?”

“Don’t get distracted, Hunk. We’re here to find Keith.”

“Right.”

It was tricky climbing into the partially collapsed building, picking their way through the rubble. Several times, the piles they had to walk on shifted dangerously so that every step had to be scrutinized. The slow pace was maddening, as was the fact that even though Shiro had been in the building just yester-quintant, it was impossible to recognize anything.

“Are you getting overwhelmed, because I’m…yeah…I don’t think I can breathe,” Hunk finally whispered. “Do we search for lifesigns? Doorways? Stairs going down?”

“Stay calm, Hunk. Allura sent me a scan of the underground chambers of the building. All we have to do is find the doorway to the stairs, which should be intact. Beyond that will be the entrance to the dungeons.”

“Wow, plural? There was more than one?” Hunk shifted his huge gun to his other shoulder and rolled his neck to stretch it out. “I’m, like, really tense.”

“Yes, there was more than one. They were all empty, except for…the one cell Keith was in.”

“But he didn’t look like himself,” Hunk’s words came spilling out as they neared one of the only intact doorways in the entire building. “Right? So there’s no way you should have known it was him. I mean, I wouldn’t have. I totally bought that the fake Keith was the real Keith. I mean, when I saw him die, I was devastated, you know?”

“Yeah, I know.” Shiro paused to kick aside a fallen door. Beneath was a stone stairway that descended into darkness. “This is it.”

“Wow. That’s dark. So I guess that’s the dungeon? Or one of them? Weird that these aliens are so far advanced as to have robotic technology—because that’s what fake Keith was, right, a robot drone?— but they still use dungeons. Huh. Well, maybe their civilization developed backwards from ours. Maybe dungeons are the new ‘in’ thing here.”

By the time Hunk followed, Shiro was halfway down the stairs, his arm glowing to show the way. It was just the beginning of a long trek through the dungeon with plenty of whispered commentary and questions from a very nervous Hunk. There was no sign of Keith, or even of a landmark that Shiro recognized, just more destruction and a few areas where the ceiling had caved in.

His comm activated. “Shiro?”

“Go ahead, Lance,” Shiro said, pausing at the bottom of a set of stairs.

“Keith’s not here,” Lance said, “and you’re not going to believe why! They can’t find him!”

“Yeah,” Pidge whispered, “this officer is getting reamed out because everyone they  _could_  have asked is already dead or has disappeared!”

“Good work, you two,” Shiro said in relief. “Now, get back your lions as quick as you can.”

“No problemo. This ship is almost all drones and Pidge has most of them powered down already.”

“Way to go, Pidge,” Hunk whispered.

“Like it was hard,” she said with a snort. “They really need to update their security protocol. It’s like they haven’t had a real challenge in thousands of years.”

“I guess you haven’t found anything yet, Shiro?”

“Not yet. You two, stay sharp and do some more damage on the way out.”

“You got it,” Pidge said with relish. “There must be a self-destruct sequence around here somewhere.”

“Well, that’s good news, kinda,” Hunk commented as he reached the bottom of the stairs. “And hey, not that I don’t like wandering around in dark, deserted, half-burned dungeons, but any idea how much longer we’ll be down here?”

“You’re doing great. Don’t worry; there doesn’t seem to be anybody left down here to attack us. All we have to do is find Keith.”

“Soooo, if there’s no one left down here except Keith, we could probably use bodyheat imaging to find him. I mean, right?”

Shiro almost cursed. “Allura,” he called out on the comm link, “can you try to find Keith now? We expected there to be a lot of heat signatures around here, but we’re seeing no one.”

“Of course! I was distracted by the battle going on here, Shiro. Here’s the same map from earlier, but with heat signatures for anyone remaining in the dungeons.”

“There’s a battle going on?”

“Nothing to worry about,” she insisted, then sent the map to their helmet screens. Immediately a single heat signature glowed ahead. Not only were they in the correct dungeon, but they were on the right floor as well.

“Oh, I see it!” Hunk whispered. “Is that him? Could this be a trap?”

Shiro lowered his voice as well. “It’s him and we’re about to find out.”

“Please be careful, Shiro. And you as well, Hunk. We need all of you back up here in one piece!”

As they walked on, Shiro’s arm glowed brighter, pressing back the darkness well enough to see a tunnel appear on the right. They had nearly missed it in the dark.  

“Uh…Shiro, the heat signature is fading? Does that mean what I think it means?”

“We need to move!” They stumbled down a debris-filled hallway, empty cells on both sides. Shiro opened his visor and the acrid smell of smoke filled his nostrils. “Keith?”

Ahead, a rockfall had smashed through the bars of the final cell and deposited a tower of stone in its place. “Keith, we’re here! Just hang on,” Shiro called again as he began working to get the stones out of the way.

“This has to be it, right?” Hunk asked as he joined in, hefting rocks and setting them aside with an occasional jerk to avoid the rolling ones.

“Keith, buddy, you there?” There was no answer.

Shiro cursed as he moved the last big rock, fumbled his way through the hole and shone light around the empty cell.  _“Keith?”_

Hunk rumbled his way through to stand beside Shiro. “I don’t see him. Could he—could he be hiding? I mean, if Galra were looking for me, I’d hide.”

“Glad one of us is thinking,” Shiro murmured as he moved farther into the cell, Hunk right on his heels. “Keith? It’s just us—Shiro and Hunk.”

A pitiful groan met their ears and a long, green hand stretched out from the far corner of the alcove.

Hunk gasped and pulled his gun, but Shiro cut him off with a gesture, “No—it’s Keith!” Then the Black Paladin was on his knees. “You’re okay, buddy. I’m here,” he said gently, reaching into the shadows. “Let me help you out…all right?”

 _“Ohmygod, ohmygod, ohmygod,”_  Hunk whispered as Shiro pulled out a limp, green, misshapen body with no resemblance to the Red Paladin at all.  _“Keith?”_  he squeaked. “How?”

“Some sort of holographic tech,” Shiro said in a low tone as he cradled the body and reached behind the head, “and I fell for it. Keith? Are you awake, buddy?”

“’Sorry… Shiro,” the creature mumbled with Keith’s voice.

“That’s Keith!” Hunk cheered, then turned on his comm. “Guys, we found him. He doesn’t  _look_  like Keith yet, but he—oh, wait…  _now_  he does…”

Hunk trailed off as Keith’s actual body came into view, armorless and plastered with some sort of silver material. Was he unconscious? He was super pale and his eyes were closed. Blood matted his hair and decorated one cheek garishly.

“Keith? Buddy, can you wake up?

It was really hard for Hunk not to panic. Keith wasn’t responding and not that long ago, they had watched someone who looked  _just_  like him die on a med table _._  Hunk took a deep breath and knelt beside Shiro, who had bowed his head over Keith and was shaking visibly.

“Shiro…? That head injury looks bad. We need to—”

 _“I know that!_  Don’t you think—” Shiro snapped before cutting himself off, his body tense.

Hunk shot a glance at Shiro’s hotly glowing arm. “Of course you do. He’s going to be fine, Shiro. We just need to get him back to the castle  _now.”_

When Shiro lifted his head again, Hunk gasped. For a just a few seconds, Shiro’s eyes glowed golden. “What was  _that?”_  Hunk asked, shocked.

“Black. He’s coming to get us. We have to hurry.” Quickly, Shiro sent his hands ghosting over Keith’s body, checking for broken bones and movement in his chest.

 “Wow. Okay. So…is he all right? Do you need me to carry him?”

“I’ve got him,” Shiro said as he gently slid his arms under Keith’s upper back and knees, pulling him close against his chest he stood. “He’s stable for now. Just lead the way.”

“Guys, we’re heading out.  Keith’s in pretty rough shape,” Hunk summed up for the others, who seemed to be involved in some sort of attack outside. It was a good thing Lance had gotten back to his lion.

Carefully, they navigated the rubble and the steep stairs, being sure to keep Keith steady and safe. The walk out seemed three times longer than in, but the relief of having found Keith alive made all the steps easier.

“I’m sorry for shouting at you,” Shiro said once they had cleared the stairs. “I’m just…”

“It’s okay,” Hunk reassured him, “I was about to lose it, too, man. I mean…it’s Keith.” Shiro’s outburst hadn’t surprised Hunk or upset him. That kind of blatant demonstration of Shiro’s love for Keith had always rubbed Lance the wrong way, but Hunk just adored Shiro all the more for it.

The man had a big, beautiful soft heart and lil’ orphan Keith had climbed in and made a home there. It was impossible to imagine Shiro without Keith, or Keith without Shiro. The level of respect and care they showed for each other was astounding and that bond was a part of what made them the perfect Black and Red Paladins.

“Paladins, the Black Lion is straight across the square,” Allura warned them as they reached the exit, “but there are four Galra fighters in the area.”

“Don’t worry, guys, I’ve got you covered!” Lance swept by overhead, chasing two fighters to the North.

“Thanks, Lance!” Hunk kept his bayard up on his shoulder as they ran toward Black. One more fighter came in from the South and Hunk stopped to deal with him. “Keep going, Shiro!”

Shiro heaved Keith up higher and sprinted for the lion which had landed across the square.

Hunk’s lasers shot wide but just as the ship opened fire on Shiro, Hunk connected and tore a hole into its side. Flames shot out and seconds later, it exploded.  “Yes!” Hunk cheered as the ship dropped out of the sky.

Then one more ship swept in from behind, bearing down on the Black Lion just as Shiro climbed inside.

Hunk planted his feet and lifted his bayard again, “I’ve got this one.” He opened fire just as Lance appeared to the West.

“No,  _I’ve_  got this one,” Lance said determinedly. “Go, Hunk!” Then he fired a freezing ray that turned the ship into a lump of ice headed for the ground.

 “We need to leave now, Hunk,” Shiro commanded.

“I’m here,” Hunk shouted as Black reached down and snapped him up. “Whoa.” He gripped the stairs as Black moved into position, then headed into the cargo hold to help secure Keith.

“I’m going back to help Pidge!” Lance called out as he veered away.

“Good work, Lance,” Shiro said. “Allura, we’re on our way.”

“Wonderful. We could use some help.”

Shiro flew Black into battle, resenting every second of delay that kept him from getting Keith to the castle. "Hunk, keep him safe and hold on tight!"

 "You got it!" Hunk gripped the side of the cot and whispered to Keith, "you're gonna' be fine, buddy. Just hang on."

In under seven doboshes, it would all be over.


End file.
